We have created a gallery page to showcase photos our customers have shared with us on social media. You can use hashtag #teamNTVS for a chance to be featured on the @teamNTVS Instagram account and on the website. Thanks for your support and please continue to share with us!

Nov. 20, 1969, a group of Native college students called United Indians of All Tribes, occupied Alcatraz Island under both “The Right of Discovery” the Treaty of Fort Laramie (1868) which promised to return all retired, abandoned or out-of-use federal lands to the Native peoples from whom it was originally acquired. Policymakers were forced to respond. In 1969 President Richard Nixon rescinded the Indian Termination Policy and established a new policy of Indian Self-Determination. We wanted to make a shirt to remind people of this take over, and while the graffiti left behind remains the only visible sign of the movement on Alcatraz, the heart of its legacy remains through tribal sovereignty, cultural survival, Indian education and Indian economic development. Please read more about this take over and educate your friends.

T-shirt shown will be released Saturday, Aug. 26th. It is a Steven Paul Judd collaboration and only 100 will be available.

If you have a little over 20 minutes, watch the documentary below about the takeover. "We Hold the Rock."

"Such treaties may be alright for men who are too old to hunt or fight. As for me, I have my young warriors about me. We will hold our land." - Chief Dragging Canoe, Chickamauga Tsalagi (Cherokee) 1775

We are excited to announce that we are now accepting PayPal as a payment option. It's been a long time coming. Just continue through the checkout process as normal and you will be given the option to choose PayPal instead of entering a CC#.

We are also happy to say we've fixed the issue some were having with the SHOP page. This problem seemed to only be happening for select iPhone users.

NO MORE GUESSING ON SIZES! :) Starting Feb 11th we will be including better size descriptions for women's apparel. We will let you know if it is true to size and also provide a description of how it will fit.

Native American art and culture have had an influence on fashion. Not only within the U.S. but throughout the world. You can see new boutique brands opening up and promoting their lines all the time. In fact, we derive a great deal of influence from our Native American roots and infuse a blend of streetwear into our Native clothing brand.

However, there is a darker trend making itself increasingly evident. It seems lately there are people trying to capitalize off the North Dakota Access Pipeline. Or, DAPL as it is sometimes referred. It has become popular on Facebook to run ads claiming to sell 'Native American Inspired Clothing' with the goal of profiting off the unfortunate events in North Dakota.

Some of these ads even claim to donate part of the proceeds to charitable organizations but there is no evidence to back up their claims. It is important to note that this isn't only centered around DAPL. There are individuals and groups running ads mostly on Facebook promoting their gear. Many of these Facebook pages are not even run by natives. We have found that a majority are actually run by Middle Eastern and European groups.

There are ways you can spot these scammers and fakes.

These groups are running Facebook sponsored posts and usually have a celebrity photoshopped in.

Pay attention to grammar and links that take you to sites with .uk etc.

When you click on the link it takes you to a third party website like 'Teespring', 'Sunfrog', 'Amazon', or 'Teechip' just to name a few.

Be wary of these advertisements on Facebook. Do your due diligence and spread the word 'Buy From Native Brands'.

REAL Native American Brands You Should Check Out

Grey Owl Crafts Provides a wide variety of traditional crafts, books, videos and artwork. They strive to insure that Native American culture is continually passed between generations.

Beyond Buckskin Beyond Buckskin empowers Native American artist and designers. They have done an amazing job advancing Native American fashion through extensive education while providing a platform for societal participation.

OxDxA Native owned clothing line based in Arizona that blends Native culture, street art and music.

Eight Generation Native-owned and operated based out of Seattle, Washington. They creatively blend traditional Coast Salish art with influences from an urban environment to make statements about identity.

Section 35"Our art and clothing will embrace our differences. We will bring you many different lens’ and world views. Yet through it all our hope is that you will find that we are more alike than different. "

Authentic Americans

Authentic Americans is a Native American owned and ran clothing company. They create modern Native American inspired clothing & accessories infused with a bit of art and culture.

If you want to help, we urge you to consider buying from a Native American owned business or donate directly to an organization fighting the DAPL. Be aware of fraudulent companies and individuals looking to profit from Native American culture and artwork. Also, feel free to comment and list other Native artists/brands that we may have missed.

Special thanks to everyone who made this limited release a success! We were able to raise over $4,500 to donate to Standing Rock. The first donation was made directly to standingrock.org and the second was to indigenousrising.org.

Again a special thanks goes out to everyone that bought a No DAPL and Defend the Sacred Tee! The Defend the Sacred Tees are being shipped out this Friday!

These limited edition tee's are available in three colorways. We have teamed up with indigenous rising and Steven Paul Judd to help raise money for standing rock. The money will be used to further communications and housing infrastructure for the camps.

Indigenous Environmental Network - a grassroots indigenous community is fighting for climate and economic justice on Turtle Island. We want to help them raise money to assist in their efforts and further their cause.

Indigenous Rising are inspiring people to rise up in solidarity to defend our rights. To protect and honor sacred lands along with the rights and well-being of future generations.

A portion of all proceeds will be donated as a result of our limited release.

Born in 1840, American Horse the Younger had a diverse lift. He was an Oglala Lakota Chief, Statesman, Educator, and Historian. He was most famously known as a U.S. Army Indian Scout and strived for friendly associations with whites and promoting education for his people.

Chief Joseph the Younger

Chief Joseph led his band of Native Americans through one of the most turbulent periods during American history. During this time period, his tribe was forcibly removed from their ancestral lands by the federal government. The U.S forced his tribe northeast, onto a significantly smaller reservation. An occurrence of violent events led those Nez Perce who resisted removal, including Joseph's band to take flight in an effort to reach political asylum.

They were aggressively pursued by the U.S. Army led by General Oliver O. Howard. This 1,170 mile stretch of fighting retreat in 1877 became known as the Nez Perce War.

Kicking Bear

Kicking Bear, born in 1846 also known as Matȟó Wanáȟtake was an Oglala Lakota. Kicking Bear went on to become a band chief of the Miniconjou Lakota Sioux. He fought in several battles alongside his brother, Flying Hawk and first cousin, Crazy Horse.

Kicking Bear was one of the five warrior cousins who sacrificed blood and flesh for Crazy Horse at the Last Sun Dance of 1877. The purpose of the ceremony was to honor Crazy Horse one year after the victory at the Battle of the Greasy Grass and offer prayers for him for the difficult times ahead.

Scarface Charley

Scarface Charley, born in 1851 was a chief of the Modoc tribe of Native Americans. He played a critical role in the Modoc War of 1872-73 in California. He is considered to have fired first at the Battle of Lost River. In 1873, Scarfaced Charley led a brazen assault against a patrol of over 60 soldiers. He was credited with killing all five officers in the patrol, along with twenty other soldiers. It was reported he stopped the fighting and told the soldiers, “we've killed enough of you, now go home.”

Haskay-bay-nay-ntayl – The Apache Kid

Born in 1860, the Apache Kid was a White Mountain Apache scout who led a very colorful life. The Apache kid was everything from a military scout to a renegade on the run. The exact date of his birth is unknown and the time of his death is contested as well.

Captured by the Yuma Indians as a kid he was later freed by the U.S. Army where he became a street orphan within the camps. Around the middle of 1870, he was adopted by Al Sieber the Chief of the Army Scouts. Shortly later he enlisted with the US Cavalry as a scout in a program to help quell the Apache raids. He quickly rose up through the ranks due to his remarkable abilities on the job and was promoted sergeant.

His problems began when he was involved in a riot while intoxicated, as a result he was sent North to avoid sever penalties. Several years later The Apache kid was involved in an altercation between some of his fellow scouts during a party which resulted in several deaths. When confronted several shots were fired from the crowd that had gathered, this resulted in Sieber being injured. During the confusion The Apache Kid along with several others escaped.

The Apache Kid character in Marvel Comics was also named after him but otherwise has no connection.

If you enjoyed these images be sure to check out our gallery of vintage Native American photos. They are all public domain/free use. Feel free to use them for any projects, blogs, articles or whatever else you might be working on.

If you haven't been living under a rock lately then you are familiar with the recent water crisis in Flint rock Michigan. But unfortunately there are other water crisis that are not getting the proper attention they deserve.

Through much adversity, Andy Hartley Payne went on to win the formidable Trans-American Footrace in 1928. Put together by the route 66 Association and sly promoter, Charles Pyle. The race was over 3,000 miles across the country. However, despite how grueling it was many reporters did not take the competition too seriously and fondly dubbed it the 'Bunion Race'.

Few know the history behind the creation of Mount Rushmore. It is a story of struggle and to some, desecration. The location of Mount Rushmore in the Black Hills are considered sacred land to the Lakota Sioux. For some, the four presidents carved into the hill embody a sort of negative symbolism. As the Sioux never had much luck in dealing with early European settlers.

The function of this carefully worked implement is unknown, although there are many unsubstantiated theories. The style is typical of many such stone carvings from the British Columbia region. Traces of red paint suggest that it was once covered with color; it was presumably carried by the loop handle. This specimen was found in a rock cave in Niska Valley by Lt. G. T. Emmons.

Stone Oil Lamp

These remarkable sculptured objects, carved from heavy blocks of hard stone, were made to hold a quantity of seal or whale oil. When a moss wick was inserted and lit, they served as lamps in the Eskimo's home. While the incorporation of a human figure into the design is characteristic of this period, the reason for such an effigy is not known; it has been suggested that it represents a spirit. In later times, lamps lost this quality, eventually degenerating into functional but less artistic products.

Petroglyph

This incised record of a herd of mountain sheep is an example of a decorative stone art form found throughout the western United States. Such designs are often colored in with earth pigments, or painted on flat stone surfaces; these latter rarely survive unless protected, as in a cave. Their use is subject to controversy; many were doubtless simply pictorial representations. Others were probably hunters' tallies or magic wishes for success in the chase.

Stone Whale Effigy

Depicting the killer whale, this is a fine example of the work of the early Pacific Coast artists of Southern California. Although many of these carved effigies have been excavated, their purpose is unknown; it is likely that they were connected with fishing ceremonies. The power of the native artist expressed in such a simple form is a tribute to his ability.

Polychrome Plate

An example of ware produced in southern Arizona during the archaeological period termed Hohokam. Although the quality of clay is poor and forms are usually not of great aesthetic interest, the designs and motifs used by these people are of exceptional quality. Many of them include delightful humorous touches.

Stone Effigy Head

Apparently carved and deposited as a burial offering in a mound, this may represent an ancestral figure. It is extremely realistic, and is one of the few masks, or heads of such type recovered from archaeological excavations.

Effigy Pipe

This finely sculptured stone pipe, depicting a spoonbill duck holding a fish, is widely known as one of the most artistic of the many Hopewell effigy pipes. The eyes of the bird may at one time have been inlaid, but this now lost.

Sandstone Tablet

The "Wilmington Tablet", as this is commonly known, is a flat sandstone slab in which a complicated pattern has been deeply incised. Several such stone or wood slabs have been discovered, but their purpose is not understood.

Bone Comb

These skillfully carved combs were used by women throughout the Eastern Woodlands area, and primarily among the early Iroquois people. This exceptional example made from bone represents two animals facing each other.

Head Effigy

This finely modeled jar representing a death's head may e mute evidence of the practice of taking human trophy heads, supporting a concept previously suggested. On the other hand, while it may be the head of a slain enemy, it may also be merely that of the person in whose grave this vessel was buried. The whole practice is part of a widespread manifestation throughout the Southeast which archaeologists have termed the "Southern Death Cult." The holes pierced in the ear were once decorated with turquoise or shell beads, as in real life; these have since been lost.

The Native Boy's are a group of Native American (NAVAJO) teens from Many Farms, AZ. They make comedic videos and memes that you may have seen on social media. Their Facebook page now has over 60,000 followers.

Check out their page here: https://www.facebook.com/The-Native-Boys-1454015728163366/timeline

Native American clothing varied greatly from tribe to tribe based on what was readily available to the different tribes in the region. Various tribes were easily recognized by the clothing they wore and how their outfits were decorated. Historically Native American clothing was made from resources that were naturally available and abundant.

According to a study roughly 22% of Native Americans currently live on tribal lands or reservations. What most people do not know living conditions on Native American reservations resemble that of third world conditions or more recently referred to as a fourth world.